United States Falls to 9th of 33 in Industrial Competitiveness, Its Lowest Finish in Eleven Years
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — August 25, 2026 — The United States closed 2025 ranked 9th of 33 major economies in Intratec's Industry Economics & Competitiveness 2025 Annual Review, published today — its lowest finish in the report's eleven years. The country's overall score fell 1.4% year-on-year, the steepest decline among the ranking's top ten economies.
The review compares 33 major economies on the same basis across 14 pillars — among them manufacturing and construction labor costs, industrial energy prices, taxation and market access — with findings drawn across 7 industries.
The fall is a cost story, not an output one. The United States ranks 2nd of 33 for industrial production, behind only China, and 3rd for the size of its home market and for its domestic tax environment. What slipped is what it costs to staff a plant: manufacturing labor ranks 27th of 33 and construction labor 29th, after manufacturing labor rose 4% to $50.8 an hour in 2025, even as industrial energy eased 1% to $22.3 per MMBtu. Employers here pay a payroll charge of 8% of wages, the fourth-lightest of the 33 — the labor bill, not the tax bill, is what moved the country down a place.
"At $50.8 an hour, all costs included, one American manufacturing worker costs more than seven Chinese ones — and construction labor has risen every year since 2015. Wage relief is not coming."
— Alexandre Carvalho, Analyst, Industry Economics & Competitiveness
China closed 2025 on top for an eleventh straight year, and each of the next four economies held its exact 2024 position. Movement began at 6th, where Singapore and the Philippines swapped places; the United States fell one place, from 8th to 9th.
The Industry Economics & Competitiveness 2025 Annual Review is free to read, and its methodology is open.
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